Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows Shop News Showtimes

Righteous Kill

R Released Sep 12, 2008 1h 40m Crime Drama List
18% Tomatometer 149 Reviews 37% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
Detectives Thomas Cowan (Robert De Niro) and David Fisk (Al Pacino), 30-year veterans of the NYPD, investigate the murder of a pimp. The crime resembles a case they solved many years earlier. As the body count rises, they realize they're dealing with a vigilante taking over when the police fail. The similarities between past and present crimes leads the detectives to wonder if they put the wrong man behind bars.
Watch on Fandango at Home Buy Now

Where to Watch

Righteous Kill

Righteous Kill

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Al Pacino and Robert De Niro do their best to elevate this dowdy genre exercise, but even these two greats can't resuscitate the film's hackneyed script.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View All (149) Critics Reviews
Nell Minow Movie Mom Rated: B- Feb 18, 2012 Full Review Mark Holcomb Time Out Rated: 2/5 Nov 18, 2011 Full Review Joshua Katzman Chicago Reader This thriller by Jon Avnet is mostly by the numbers, and its surprise ending, though effective, feels somewhat forced. Dec 9, 2008 Full Review Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review Given the downright sloppiness of the storytelling and squashed hopes that De Niro and Pacino might electrify the screen again, Righteous Kill is hugely disappointing. Rated: 1/4 Jun 5, 2024 Full Review Emiliano Basile EscribiendoCine …the only thing these Oscar-ized actors are looking for is a paycheck. [Full review in Spanish] Rated: 4/10 May 11, 2022 Full Review Jason Best What's On TV De Niro and Pacino back together but firing blanks. Nov 20, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (1000+) audience reviews
Jeffrey P There's the making of a better movie here but this felt rushed and spotty, like it was trying to be too fresh and creative with the ‘bad cop, badder cop' routine but things become a bit more justified and make a bit more sense by the time the credits roll. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 03/25/24 Full Review Dani G From The Godfather, to Heat... to THIS THING?! C'mon Pacino! C'Mon De Niro! Lack of money, maybe? Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 10/12/23 Full Review Philip L I get why the reviews were pretty bad..the obligatory gorgeous lady cop! But I love those two guys and would pay to watch them eat soup! Rated 3 out of 5 stars 07/12/23 Full Review M R Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have Pacino and Deniro do a B Movie or straight to video release? This is it. It's ok. Not very rewatchable. Grade: 72/100 C- Rated 3 out of 5 stars 06/26/23 Full Review DRAFTAS A let down.. did anyone read the script, just because you have a great cast doesn't mean you have a great film. A crime drama were who you think is doing the murders, is! was that meant to be a twist. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 05/21/23 Full Review kenneth r I was surprised how much I liked It after the poor reviews, seems like mass band wagon jumping. The story intriguing, the Direction very good, the acting excellent as you would expect, & the dialogue slick & cynical. The only disappointment was the ending, a bit too sudden & rushed. Ignore the critique & enjoy. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Righteous Kill

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cast & Crew

Brooklyn's Finest 44% 46% Brooklyn's Finest The Son of No One 16% 22% The Son of No One 88 Minutes 5% 44% 88 Minutes Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans 86% 57% Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans What Doesn't Kill You 66% 47% What Doesn't Kill You Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Detectives Thomas Cowan (Robert De Niro) and David Fisk (Al Pacino), 30-year veterans of the NYPD, investigate the murder of a pimp. The crime resembles a case they solved many years earlier. As the body count rises, they realize they're dealing with a vigilante taking over when the police fail. The similarities between past and present crimes leads the detectives to wonder if they put the wrong man behind bars.
Director
Jon Avnet
Producer
Avi Lerner, Jon Avnet, Randall Emmett, Lati Grobman, Alexandra Milchan
Screenwriter
Russell Gewirtz
Distributor
Overture Films
Production Co
Emmett/Furla Films, Millennium Films
Rating
R (Pervasive Language|Brief Drug Use|Some Sexuality|Violence)
Genre
Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 12, 2008, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 27, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA)
$40.1M
Runtime
1h 40m
Most Popular at Home Now